Follow Save the Bay

Tag: scott pruitt

Scott Pruitt may have left the building, but his legacy of attacks on the environment and climate denial will likely live on. So, Save The Bay’s work to protect the Bay Area and California remains vital and urgent this year.

Pruitt’s resignation as EPA Administrator comes after his many scandals prompted at least 13 federal investigations. Worse for the planet, Pruitt also initiated 31 EPA deregulation efforts to undo long-standing rules that protect public health from pollution. Expect Pruitt’s replacement, EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler, to continue or accelerate this agenda, and offer no relief to the nation’s air and water.

A former coal and uranium lobbyist, Wheeler lobbied for Murray Energy and other major polluters, working against strong protections for clean air, water and public lands. He also worked as an aide to James Inhofe of Oklahoma, the leading climate change denier in the U.S. Senate. Wheeler could actually be more effective than Pruitt was in rolling back environmental protections because he’s a veteran Washington, DC, insider with extensive political contacts.

So, what should we do? Resist and redouble our efforts to ensure state and regional environmental laws and funding compensate for federal disinvestment in San Francisco Bay and California’s resources. Save The Bay will:

Lead the fight to reduce pollution of the Bay and accelerate climate adaptation in the Bay Area. Whoever runs the EPA, we have the tools to reduce trash in the Bay, and insist that California regulators enforce the stormwater pollution rules Caltrans has violated for years.

Seize the opportunity to secure another $200 million in state matching funds for Bay marsh restoration this fall. We’ve already endorsed Proposition 3, the November state water bond that adds money for the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority’s wetlands grants, beyond what the regional Measure AA parcel tax provides.

Encourage our federal elected officials to exercise vigorous oversight of EPA and block rollback of crucial water and air protections. We’ll urge Senators Feinstein and Harris, Nancy Pelosi and the entire Bay Area delegation to be tenacious watchdogs over the EPA’s budget, and the Clean Water Act that guards against pollution and destruction of wetlands.

The Bay Area and California have already shown we won’t let the Trump Administration take us backwards on environmental protection. Scott Pruitt’s resignation should only strengthen our resolve to make San Francisco Bay better for future generations, starting right here at home.

Today, the U.S. Senate confirmed Scott Pruitt as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

This is a big victory for polluters, and a huge loss for America and our Bay.

The danger Scott Pruitt poses to San Francisco Bay is very real. The EPA has a central role in protecting the Bay, particularly by enforcing the Clean Water Act. For years, Pruitt has been a fierce opponent of that law—along with many other critical environmental protections. As Oklahoma attorney general, Pruitt attacked the EPA’s cleanup of Chesapeake Bay—a case that’s directly relevant to future of San Francisco Bay.

So much of the progress we have achieved is under threat all over again. Restorable wetlands we’ve fought successfully to protect—like the Cargill Salt Ponds in Redwood City—are newly vulnerable.

The scary truth is, as long as Scott Pruitt leads the EPA, we cannot count on our federal government to protect the Bay. In this new era, environmental progress and protection will be fought and won locally. That’s why Save The Bay’s effective work with Bay cities and state agencies is more important than ever. To beat Pruitt and the anti-environment Congress, we need more resources to block wetlands destruction, create critical habitat for fish and wildlife, and reduce trash and toxic pollution from cities.

We are ready to fight—here’s what we’re doing:

Pushing back fiercely against every effort to undermine environmental protections

Rallying local communities as grassroots activists and environmental volunteers to protect and restore our Bay

It’s a dark time for environmental protection in America, but we’ve been here before and persevered. We’ve been mobilizing grassroots victories since 1961—before the EPA, before the Clean Water Act … before “environmentalist” was even a word. Today, our work is more essential than ever, and we won’t shy away from the fight.

Are you looking for a way to resist the Trump Administration’s assault on the environment? We need your support.